1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electronic circuits and systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to radio frequency receivers and transceivers used in communication applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
For future military and commercial applications there may be a need for a radio capable of operating over a wide band of frequencies. This would ordinarily involve switching or multiplexing the received signal to one of N channels for subsequent gain control and mixing operations. However, it would be difficult for a single radio frequency (RF) switch to cover either the RF or IF frequency range.
Accordingly, a more promising approach would be to use a number of RF switches to selectively direct a received RF signal to an appropriate intermediate frequency processing stage. These switches would typically be single pole, multi-throw solid state switches implemented in silicon or Gallium Arsenide (GaAs). The switches would typically be disposed on a separate chip relative to the RF receiver in a 50-ohm environment.
Unfortunately, in addition to requiring complicated circuitry, this approach would present difficult power, third order intercept (intermodulation product distortion), noise figure, insertion loss and interchannel isolation issues. In addition, the switches would have to operate over a wide RF band or a wide IF band, both of which are difficult to achieve.
Hence, there is a developing need in the art for a system or method for providing a radio capable of operating over a wide band with minimal power consumption and circuit complexity. More specifically, there is a growing need in the art for a system or method for switching or multiplexing a received signal to one of N channels for subsequent gain control and mixing operations for individual and simultaneous output via a single stage at low power.